Haruki didn't hesitate. He took the stack of documents from Claudia—over a dozen pages covered in dense, microscopic legal jargon.
"That's quite a lot of reading," Haruki noted.
"Don't worry. These are official Integrated Enterprise Foundation documents. There are no 'trap' clauses hidden in the fine print," Claudia said, her tone reassuring. "It's mostly a formality. You can just sign them."
"Fine."
Without so much as a second glance, Haruki scrawled his signature on every page.
Claudia blinked in surprise. She had expected a man as cautious as Haruki to scrutinize every word before committing. In reality, Haruki simply didn't care about the text.
He knew that the true "legitimacy" of a document wasn't found in the ink on the page, but in the power balance between the signers. As long as he remained the stronger party, no contract could bind him against his will. If the Foundation tried to use a clause to trick him, he would simply use his blade to "nullify" the agreement.
"By the way, Haruki-kun," Claudia said, leaning back as she took the papers. "There's a very persistent rumor going around. Are you and Julis-san actually dating?"
"Do you think she has the personality for that?" Haruki countered flatly.
"So, it's just a rumor," Claudia chuckled. She seemed to know Julis well. "Still, if it were you, I think you might actually be able to capture that Princess's heart."
"What makes you say that?"
"Because you're so similar," Claudia replied, her eyes twinkling. "You radiate the same kind of intensity. The fact that she lets you stand near her at all is proof enough that you've earned her respect."
"..."
Haruki remained silent. He didn't feel similar to the fiery girl, nor did he feel particularly "accepted."
He prepared to take his leave, but just as he moved toward the door, a familiar "vibration" spiked in the shadows behind them.
"!!"
Haruki didn't think; he moved. He blurred across the room, appearing in front of Claudia.
SHING!
His blade hummed as it sliced through the air, knocking several high-velocity arrows of light out of the sky before they could reach the President.
"What!?"
Claudia stared at the spot where the arrows had disintegrated, her composed facade momentarily cracking.
Haruki didn't wait for her to recover. He vaulted over the desk and dove out the window, landing in the courtyard and sprinting toward the treeline. He moved with the speed of a gale, his Sense of Fluctuation locked onto the retreating signature.
A few minutes later, he emerged from the bushes, dragging a metallic, multi-limbed object by one of its legs.
"A puppet?" Haruki asked, looking down at the machine.
Claudia, who had followed him out, nodded slowly. "It appears to be an autonomous Al-D unit... but this isn't a standard model. Standard service units don't have combat programming or Star Pulse emitters."
"So it was custom-built for an assassination?"
"Likely," Claudia agreed. Her eyes narrowed as she inspected the wreckage. "Given the sophistication of the servos and the integrated Lux-core... I'd bet anything that Allekant Academy is behind this."
"Allekant?"
"The research-focused academy. They specialize in cybernetics and artificial intelligence. They prefer drones to human fighters. Compared to them, we at Seidokan are practically ancients, still focusing on Strega magic and swordsmanship."
"I see." Haruki filed the name away.
"Haruki-kun, you saved me again," Claudia said, taking a deep breath to steady herself. "Please... let me find a way to repay you."
"Don't bother. The target was me," Haruki said, shaking his head. "The machine was tracking my signature. You were just in the way."
"Even so, a debt is a debt. I won't forget this."
The following day, Haruki returned to the Student Council office. It wasn't for social reasons; Claudia had sent a notification to his terminal stating that the authorization for his Pure Stellar Lux request had been processed.
"You're here," Claudia smiled as he entered.
Haruki noticed he wasn't the only one. Ayato Amagiri, the other transfer student, was also there.
"Hey, Haruki," Ayato waved, looking slightly sheepish. "Are you here for a Pure Stellar Lux too?"
"I'm just here to see what the fuss is about," Haruki replied honestly. He didn't place much faith in gear, but he was curious about any weapon that claimed to have a "soul."
As they spoke, the office door opened again, admitting several more students.
"You! The one who was with Julis!"
A large, muscular man pointed at Haruki. It was Lester MacPhail, the Rank 9 student from the park.
"And you are...?" Haruki asked. He remembered the face, but his brain had already deleted the name as irrelevant data.
"Lester! Rank 9 of Seidokan! Don't tell me you forgot already!"
"Ah. Right. The one who lost to the Princess three times," Haruki said flatly.
Lester turned a bright shade of red, but he was silenced by Claudia's presence.
"It seems you all know each other," she said with a practiced, diplomatic smile. "The candidates for the Pure Stellar Lux selection today are Haruki Aizawa, Ayato Amagiri, and Lester MacPhail. You three will accompany me to the Vault for your synchronization testing. Outsiders are not permitted beyond this point."
Lester's cronies, Silas and Randy, nodded and stepped back.
"Let's get a move on," Lester grunted, his eyes fixed on the hallway leading deeper into the building. "I've been waiting long enough for a real weapon."
"Hehe. Patience, Lester," Claudia warned. "No matter how much you want it, if your synchronization rate is too low, the weapon will simply reject you. And that rejection can be... painful."
Lester went quiet. Haruki, however, tilted his head.
"Synchronization rate? What exactly are we measuring?"
Claudia led the group deep into the sub-levels of Seidokan Academy. They passed through multiple layers of security until they reached a high-tech vault filled with rows of specialized containers.
"A Pure Stellar Lux isn't just a tool," Claudia explained as she led them toward a central podium. "It's a weapon with a sentient core made of high-purity Manadite. It has its own 'will.' Synchronization measures how well your Star Pulse—or in your case, Haruki-kun, your internal energy—aligns with that will. If the weapon likes you, you can draw its full power. If it doesn't, it's nothing but a heavy paperweight."
She stopped in front of a case containing a massive, black-handled blade that radiated an oppressive, heat-like aura.
"This is the Ser-Veresta, the Demon-Oven Sword," Claudia said. "It is one of our most powerful and most temperamental weapons. Its previous four users were all hospitalized during the testing phase."
Lester stepped forward, his ego overriding his caution. "I'll take it. A blade like that is only fit for someone at the top."
He reached out and gripped the hilt.
VROOOOM!
A surge of white-hot energy exploded from the sword. Lester let out a guttural scream as the Mana backflowed into his system, scorching his hands. He was thrown backward, crashing into the far wall, his breath coming in ragged gasps.
"Synchronization rate: 12%," a mechanical voice announced. "Compatibility: Failure."
Claudia sighed. "As I said. Temperamental."
She looked at Ayato, who looked hesitant, then at Haruki.
Haruki stepped forward. He didn't care about "will" or "compatibility." To him, a blade was a servant, and he was the master.
He reached out and gripped the hilt of the Ser-Veresta.
The moment his skin touched the metal, the weapon's consciousness lashed out. It felt like a furnace opening in his mind, a wave of arrogant, searing heat that demanded he kneel.
Haruki's eyes flared with a dark, violet light. Behind him, a faint, flickering shadow of the Darkin Blade appeared for a microsecond.
"Kneel?" Haruki's voice was a low rumble in his own mind. "I am the Sword Ghost. I have walked through hell and cut down gods. You are nothing but a splinter of glass. Obey."
He squeezed the hilt, his killing intent flooding the sword's core like a cold, suffocating tide.
The Ser-Veresta's flames flickered, then turned from a wild, chaotic orange to a steady, obedient crimson. The heat faded, replaced by a hum of absolute submission.
"Synchronization rate: 97%," the voice announced, sounding almost shocked. "Compatibility: Perfect."
Claudia and Ayato stared at Haruki in stunned silence. The "Demon-Oven" hadn't just accepted him—it had been broken.
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